


Lungs Filled With Flowers

by worriedpeach (skeletonflowers)



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Animal Crossing - Freeform, First Kiss, Fluff, Gaming, Getting Together, M/M, Nerd Dan Howell, Phan - Freeform, Popular Phil Lester, Strangers to Lovers, Texting, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-28 19:19:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13278195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skeletonflowers/pseuds/worriedpeach
Summary: Whenever Dan has a bad day, he always knows that Animal Crossing will be there for him no matter what. When he finds a friend code written on his desk, he immediately adds it into his DS, despite not knowing who it could be.





	Lungs Filled With Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written for my dear friend, Kayla (phillybops), for our secret santa on the phanfiction catalogue! When I got Kayla, I had absolutely NO IDEA what to write. But then I was thinking about things that meant a lot to her and realized that she loves Animal Crossing more than anybody I know. So I hope you like this Kayla and I love you so much! Merry Christmas and happy new year xoxo

Dan loved Animal Crossing more than he loved himself. And that’s a fact, not just a matter of opinion. 

He loves how soothing it is, how he can just get on the game and spend hours doing practically nothing. He loves the soundtrack and how the music is so calm that is makes his heart slow down, even when his anxiety is so high that it feels as though he’s absolutely wired. He loves that he can talk to animals and befriend them and build his own dream house. He loves that it’s basically just a game about _life_ , except in Animal Crossing, he had animals who loved him and the town was near perfect and devoid of stress, compared to how life usually was. 

Whenever Dan had a particularly rough day at school, he knew that Animal Crossing was there for him. He knew he could just crawl under his covers and turn on his DS and immediately get drawn into the blissful peacefulness of the game. He would make himself some hot chocolate, crawl under the covers, and talk to his animal friends. 

There was Chevre, his favourite, who was a goat and whom he considered his best friend in the game. Of course he loved Bluebear and Rosie and Apollo too. Everyone in his village was absolutely wonderful. Except for Cobb, who had decided to move _right next to Dan’s house_ , effectively destroying the flowers Dan had just planted the night before. 

Hell, Dan even loved _Queenie_ more than he liked Cobb, and that was saying a lot considering Queenie’s such a bitch.

But that’s what ignoring is for, Dan supposed. His hope was that he could drive Cobb out of his town successfully if he just didn’t talk to him, so that’s what his current mission was. Even if Cobb needed him, Dan would simply walk away until the dumb green pig left him alone. 

Maybe that was a bit harsh, but Dan gave absolutely zero fucks. He was a _savage_. 

There was also the problem that Dan might just be a _little bit_ obsessed with the game. But he supposed that was going to happen when he didn’t exactly have many friends in real life. Sure, he had a couple, but only one that he was comfortable enough to actually sit with at the lunch table. Lucky enough for him, Louise was just as obsessed with Animal Crossing as he was, to the point where they both brought their games to school and had their noses stuck in the consoles during the entire lunch break, visiting each others towns and commenting on what they liked versus what they disliked about their towns. 

One of the things Dan loved about Louise’s village is that she had flowers _everywhere._ Once he saw just how many flowers she had, Dan started to adopt her ways and began to plant as many flowers as he could, even going on trips to the Island just so that he could steal flowers from there to plant in his town. He even had a whole rainbow flower display in the middle of town because yes, he was _that gay_. Hell, it wasn’t just Dan’s town (and self) that was gay. It was his entire Animal Crossing wardrobe that was as well. In the game, Dan had rosy pink cheeks and white hair that was in what seemed kind of like a fringe. He had downloaded some QR outfit codes to make his character wear what looked like overalls with a pastel pink sweater and white boots. It was a bit over the top, but Dan was happy with it so he didn’t care. 

If Dan sometimes sent Louise’s villagers letters, telling them to call her a nerd, then Louise would find out probably months later when that villager showed her the letter. The thought of it made Dan snicker as he sent Eloise a letter saying exactly that. 

Just as he sent the parchment, the bell rang, and Dan groaned with the realisation that he would have to make his way to Chemistry, which was by far his least favourite class. Louise threw him a pitied look as she packed away her DS. “Don’t study too hard now,” she told him, making Dan grimace. 

“There’s been an attempt,” he replied glumly, to which Louise laughed at and patted him on the shoulder. Then she was off, leaving Dan to his own vices as she walked in the opposite direction as him. 

He made his way to Chemistry with quick and careful steps, his head down to the ground. He made sure not to make eye contact with anybody; a hard feat considering how tall he was. He got to the classroom quicker than most, both thanks to his long legs as well as the short distance from the canteen to the room. 

When he sat down, he almost didn’t notice the messy handwriting scrawled on the desk, but it was the sheer oddity of it that drew Dan’s attention to it. His eyebrows furrowed and he squinted down at the messy handwriting, trying to decipher what it said. It wasn’t too hard, after Dan got over his initial confusion, and slowly his eyes began to widen. 

He would recognise that arrangement of numbers anywhere, the specific formatting of some else’s friend code for a DS. Below it, a short message reading ‘ _bored, add my friend code’_ was displayed in a way that should be desperate, but for some reason something that Dan found _exciting._

Before he could think twice, Dan got out his DS and inserted the numbers into his own device. 

Then, he wrote his own friend code on the desk as well with a friendly _added :)_ scrawled in even worse handwriting. 

For the rest of class, Dan couldn’t focus. He was dumb and probably immature as fuck, but for some reason, he couldn’t wait to see who this mysterious stranger was who just so happened to write their friend codes on desks. He couldn't help but anticipate, wondering if this was the start of something new that could spice up Dan’s life. 

-

As it turns out, Dan didn’t actually find out who this person was, exactly. 

He got a friend confirmation from the person in question, but their username didn’t really give anything away about them. The name was _amazingphil_ , so Dan knew that it was most likely a male whose name was Phil. Which would be _great_ except Dan knew like twenty fucking Phil’s. 

He supposed his own username wasn’t much better, though. It was danielXdream, something ironic that Louise had come up with because of his love for all things pastel and sweet in virtual worlds. His name on Animal Crossing was just Daniel, thankfully, but he had a few side characters as well, one named _Wynter_ , who had all winter themed items, and another named _Marigold_ who was dressed in bright yellows and had flowers in her yellow hair. 

The first time Dan started playing Animal Crossing with Phil was when he’d opened the gate for Louise to join his town. They were chilling at Dan’s house that day, lounging in his bed with _Stranger Things_ running in the background, and hadn’t said more than two words to each other in the course of an hour. This was fine, nothing out of the ordinary. It was _comfortable._ Once, they’d even played stupid games on the computer for five hours straight where they had to manage a taco restaurant, and had only uttered out curse words as they spilled fake guacamole on the counter. 

Dan hadn’t been expecting anyone else’s company. Which is why he was so winded when suddenly his screen cut to a different scene of the Animal Crossing train pulling up to his village. 

“Who the fuck is that?” Dan and Louise asked at the same time, giving each other weird looks over their DSes. 

The only way that Dan would find out, of course, is by continuing to watch as some guy with a horrendous fashion style stepped off of the train, hair black and in a fringe styled somewhat similarly to Dan’s own character, but more neat. As he got off the train, the notification popped up, telling Dan that _Phil from Smosh_ had just joined them in Windhelm. 

“Phil?” Louise asked, sounding just as confused as Dan felt. “Do you even know someone other than me?”

Dan was unamused and he showed that by shoving his foot right in her face. She sputtered, trying to push him away, but only succeeded in making Dan kick her. She deserved it so Dan didn’t feel bad at all. “I know other people,” Dan lied. “Just not this dude.”

“Well the only way he can visit is if he’s in your friend’s list right? Because that’s what setting you have it on?”

Dan nodded and he already knew what had happened. He explained it to her, how he’d found some guy’s friend code written on the desk and had spontaneously added them. They friended Dan back and that had been that. No chats, no playing together. Literally nothing. 

Until now, at least. 

Dan controlled his character so he was running towards the train station, bewildered as fuck. What did he even do in this situation? Say hello?

Before he could even type out the chat, or even _find_ Phil for that matter, a chat bubble popped up in the corner of the screen. 

**Phil: __**_sorry for intruding!_

**Phil: __**_i was just super bored and curious_

Dan hesitated, opening up the keyboard. His stylus hovered over the letters, unsure of what to type. He could tell that Louise was staring at him with amusement on her face, and that was stressing him out even more, knowing somebody was _watching_ him freak out over this. He didn’t like that one bit. 

Eventually, he was able to type back, a full minute after Phil’s original message. 

**Dan: __**_no worries_

**Dan: __**_feel free to help yourself to fruit_

**Dan: __**_bells on the ground are free game_

Phil responded with a smiley face and a quick _i’ll take you up on that offer_ and that was that. 

The thing about playing Animal Crossing with each other is that you didn’t really _play_ together. Sure, you visit each other’s towns, maybe chat a bit on the game, but then you just run around and talk to the villagers and look through shops until the other person has found what they’re looking for and decides to leave. 

They didn’t chat after that, aside from an occasional comment from Phil about how Apollo is his new husband or how Louise was stealing money from Dan’s trees. It was nice, relaxing even. 

Dan didn’t even realise they’d been playing for hours until Louise said she needed to pack up and get home. Before she left, she turned and gave Dan a long, drawn out look when she saw he was still playing. With Phil. 

“This is some dumb modern romance shit,” she told him, and Dan rolled his eyes, waving her off. 

As if Animal Crossing could blossom into a _romance._

_-_

Dan had to admit, he quite liked playing with Phil. In fact, he liked it so much that they didn’t stop playing together until Dan eventually fell asleep at two in the morning, to which he woke up to a dead DS and a screaming iphone alarm clock. 

He liked playing with Phil so much that he ended up playing with him again the next day. And the day after that. And the day after _that_. He liked that they could talk through the chat, joking around, and that it wasn’t stressful. He liked the anonymity of it and how Phil invited Dan to his town even without knowing who Dan _was._ Not to mention that Phil’s village was almost as good as Dan’s was. 

It wasn’t filled with flowers like Dan’s, but he had a lot of decorations that he’d built and had also put down patterns on the ground to make it seem like his town had paths to all of the houses and shops. It was really nice and homey. Not to mention that he had some of Dan’s favourite animals, such as Bunnie, Shep, and Frita. 

He even told Phil that Shep was his boyfriend and Phil replied with a quick ‘ _no he isn’t I’ve already claimed him_ ’, which made Dan let out a surprised laugh. They just got along _so well_ and Phil was suddenly becoming a very common presence in Dan’s life, to the point where Dan was constantly wondering who this person was and if they could be friends if they met for real. 

Dan liked to think that they would be, even though he was scared out of his mind that they wouldn’t be friends. It’s not like Dan was the most popular guy in the school. Hell, he played his fucking _DS_ all day so it’s not like he had a ton of friends. But the thought of Phil not wanting to be friends with him in real life made Dan’s chest hurt for some reason. 

He didn’t want to think of why. 

Dan was lame and he was fully aware of that. But he didn’t really care. He didn’t care because he was happy, happier than he ever remembered being. He had Louise and his new friendship with Phil - whoever he was - and he had Animal Crossing. What more could he need? 

In fact, he was so lame that he ended up bumping into somebody while he was walking through the halls of school one day, face buried in his DS. He squeaked and nearly fell over, but he straightened himself before he actually could. Well, _somebody_ straightened him before he could fall, at least. 

Looking up, making sure that his DS was still trapped safely in his hands, Dan found that the stranger he’d bumped into had grabbed onto his shoulders to steady him. His hands were warm and soft, yet firm enough to keep Dan in place, and it made him relax slightly as he regarded the victim of his mindlessness. 

He was slightly surprised when he recognised the face, even though he shouldn’t be. He knew nearly everybody in his year after many moons of just watching his classmates interact from afar. He’d learned a lot from doing so; like how Geoffrey and Bianca had hooked up that weekend and even how Ethan had ended up getting suspended for setting the bathroom on fire. Dan knew pretty much everything, which is why he shouldn’t be surprised when he saw the person who’d caught him. 

“Careful there, mate,” Phil Lester said softly, and Dan’s face turned an ugly shade of red. He met those pretty blue eyes in a haze, ones filled with swirls of yellows and greens, ones that were so inviting that Dan almost leaned in to kiss him right on the fucking forehead. His hair was hanging in his eyes and Dan wanted to reach out and brush it out of his face, maybe let his fingers linger on his cheekbones for a bit. 

The thing about Phil Lester is that he was practically the opposite of Dan in every single way. He was bright and open about his life. He wore bright colours and stupid jumpers with dogs on them. He was nice to literally everybody, no matter how rude they were back. And _fuck_ , was he gorgeous. 

“I’m so sorry!” Dan gushed out, spewing out apologies like he was made for it. His whole face felt hot with mortification and his fight or flight instincts were kicking in, telling him to get out of there immediately. “I was paying too much attention to my game and I totally just knocked into you and I should know better than to play games while I walk, but I just couldn’t help myself, and I am _so fucking sorry.”_

He was ranting, but Phil didn’t seem to mind, the bright smile on his face never wavering. Phil’s hands dropped from Dan’s shoulders to hang loosely at his sides, and Dan watched those long fingers clench and unclench in rapt fascination. Why were Phil’s fingers so pretty? They were so long and slim, looked so _soft_. Maybe Dan had just found a new hand kink or something. 

“Hey,” Phil said softly, causing Dan to glance up and catch his breath. Dan froze, feeling his lungs constrict under that kind and caring gaze. _God_ , how was he so gorgeous? “I promise it’s okay. No need to worry; there’s no harm done. I’d be more concerned if you dropped your DS or something.”

Dan laughed awkwardly, a blush creeping across his skin. He was embarrassed, so fucking embarrassed, and he kind of just wanted to crawl under the floorboards to never be seen again. “All’s good,” he said, waving his unscathed DS in front of Phil. “I’d probably be in tears by now if it were broken.”

Phil chuckled and cocked his head to the side. He looked like a cute, excited puppy, and it was no wonder why everybody loved and appreciated him. Dan was about to get on his knees in front of everyone right then and there. 

To pray to him. Of course. 

“I wouldn’t blame you,” Phil replied sincerely. “I’d probably do the same.”

Dan had a moment of panic where he had to figure out what to say next. After all, what _do_ you say to that? Dan had no idea. He was horrible at small talk, especially with people he’s never really spoken with before. 

Thankfully, someone appeared out of nowhere, slapping Phil on the back with a friendly grin and a loud, “yo Phil! My man!” that made Dan cringe. Phil gave Dan an apologetic look and walked away with his friend, leaving Dan behind with an accelerated heart and an angry blush on his cheeks. 

Along with small talk, it seemed Dan was even worse when it was with a _cute boy_. God, he was a disgrace to all humankind. 

The best thing to do in this situation was to forget. It was a perfect solution, so perfect that he tried to erase the interaction from his memory as soon as Phil walked away. He distracted himself by taking his DS back out and opening Animal Crossing back up where he had been rearranging his furniture. 

The green light on the device was lit up, showing that he’d passed by someone on Streetpass, which meant someone else had had their DS with them at school as well. He hesitated for a second before deciding to save his game and go to his Streetpass, curious as to who he passed. He usually didn’t come across many other people at school who carried around their DSes all day, but occasionally he did and he’d always be filled with excitement in that occurrence. 

His eyebrows shot up in surprise when it said he had passed amazingphil. He’d known that they went to the same school, so that shouldn’t be surprising, but the actual idea of Dan passing by someone who he adored but didn’t know the identity of bothered him more than he’d have liked to admit. He had been _so close_ to meeting this guy and he had no idea!

Especially considering he’d just run into _Phil Lester_ , Dan felt a bit weird knowing that he also had the potential to run into amazingphil as well. Just his luck today. 

-

 **Phil:** thanks for always playing with me

 **Phil:** i enjoy your company

 **Dan:** you too x :)

 **Phil:** i feel like ive known you 4ever

 **Dan:** maybe we’re friend soulmates lol

 **Phil:** i like that idea a lot xx

-

Dan didn’t want to admit that he’s been having more fun playing with a stranger he’s never met before than his own best friend, but it was the _truth_. Phil was just so easy. He and Dan got on so well, as though they’ve known each other for their entire lives. Maybe that was corny as fuck, but what can Dan say? He’s been searching his entire life for someone to click with him so easily, and now that he’s finally found that person, he never wanted to let go.

The only issue was the fact that Dan didn’t know who the heck Phil actually was.

He wanted to find out. But at the same time, he didn’t want to ask in fear that he would face rejection. Because there was no telling whether Phil would actually want to be friends with him after finding out who Dan actually was. He was unpopular and only had a select few friends. He had his nose buried in his games most of the time and he was obsessed over a fictional universe because he felt like that universe was better than real life. 

Dan wouldn’t blame Phil if he didn’t want to know Dan. The _real_ Dan. 

But he needed to know. He needed to find out, to see if maybe, just maybe, Phil could be someone who would be able to be his friend. If he was, then maybe Dan could finally talk to him and form a friendship with him. A proper friendship. 

But if he wasn’t the kind of person who would want to be around Dan, then maybe he could finally stop the thoughts droning through his brain, badgering him, wondering _what if?_ That could put a stop to the hope of a new friendship blossoming, and also dull the possibility of Dan’s looming crush over an anonymous stranger. 

So that’s why he decided to find out. It wasn’t too hard, in all honesty. All he had to do was wait around the classroom and look through the window until somebody plopped down in his seat. Somebody whose name was Phil. 

He made excuses to his teachers the entire day, asking if he could go to the restroom during every period. Or maybe just to go get a drink. It wasn’t usually a problem. They would just give him a hall pass and tell him to hurry up, and Dan would run across the hall to peek into the target classroom. 

No luck. There was a Jonathan, a Ronald, a Casper, and Callie. Then Dan had lunch and then Chemistry, which he knew couldn’t be anyone in his own classroom. It was during his English class that he finally figured out just who, exactly Phil actually was, and Dan almost started to cry. 

He stopped in the doorway, his eyes wide as his gaze locked on a head of black hair. Phil was talking to somebody sitting next to him, throwing his head back to show off the pale skin of his neck and the bobbing of his adam’s apple. Dan swallowed thickly and wondered how that skin would look littered with red, before snapping himself out of it and reminding himself of the problem at hand. 

The issue being that Phil Lester was amazingphil. Dan had been playing with _Phil Fucking Lester_ all goddamn month and his new ‘friend’ didn’t even know he was talking to the biggest loser in the school.

Before Phil could see him, Dan slipped away, feeling tears prick at his eyes. He clenched his teeth together, along with his fists, and willed himself not to cry. He couldn’t cry over something as trivial as this, something that shouldn’t even matter. 

It was just a person whom Dan had never spoken to except in passing. It was just a guy who Dan liked to play with occasionally. It was nothing more and nothing would ever actually come out of the friendship. Dan didn’t want to trick himself into thinking that this would be like some fanfiction where he would start magically talking to some stranger and fall in love with them and get married and adopt pretty children with them. 

This was _real life_ and Dan was Dan and Phil was Phil Lester and Dan needed to stop being so fucking selfish. 

So he withdrew himself. 

He closed the gates to his town, only letting Louise join if she was in close proximity to him. He didn’t accept friends from faraway towns. He didn’t leave his DS on during school so he couldn’t streetpass Phil. He kept his head down and ignored Phil as best as he could. 

Maybe if he pretended like this never happened then he could go back to how things were before he’d ever met Phil. 

-

It had been almost a week since Dan had stopped talking to Phil. He knew that Phil had to be worried by now, wondering why his new friend had stopped talking to him. Dan tried to tell himself that he didn’t care, that Phil was better off this way, but it still hurt when he saw Phil in the hallways. 

It hurt because it seemed like Phil was searching for somebody. Searching for _him_. Except he didn’t know who he was actually looking for so his eyes would linger on Dan and Dan would keep his face neutral until Phil ultimately looked away. 

It was a process and it was cruel, but this was the only way. A friendship between the two of them could never work and Phil had to understand that. He had to give up hope eventually. 

Except, he didn’t. 

Because a week later, he was sitting in Chemistry when he felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned around to Phil fucking Lester staring down at him with a burning expression. 

The first thing that Dan thought was _oh fuck_. The second thing that Dan thought was _why does Phil look like he’s going to burst_? 

The only way Dan could describe Phil’s expression was by using the word ‘constipated’. He seemed as though he was torn between smiling and being angry. His eyes were so intense that Dan could feel it burning in his soul and his pale cheeks were rosy red. 

There were five minutes before class started and Phil Lester was standing in front of Dan, looking like he had seen a ghost. 

Dan was the one to speak first, clearing his throat and uttering out a small, “yes?”

Phil’s expression changed then, going through a range of emotions until he finally settled on one that was akin to awe, like he had never seen Dan before. He licked his lips and Dan’s eyes tracked the movement, how a thin layer of spit made his lips shine. “Dan?” Phil breathed, and Dan felt his own breath get punched out of him at the realisation that Phil knew exactly who he was and he didn’t give a shit about who saw them talking. 

Dan’s eyes flitted over the stares of his classmates and he clenched his fists nervously. He cleared his throat again, a nervous habit he’d picked up years ago. “That’s me.”

A sigh of relief came from Phil’s lips and he grabbed Dan’s wrist. His fingers were so delicate, but they grabbed him tight, making sure that Dan couldn’t tug free as he started to drag him towards the classroom door. His eyes were apologetic as he did so. “Sorry to interrupt your education but I really need to talk to you.” He paused, giving Dan a sheepish look that made Dan gape at him. Why was _Phil_ the nervous one? “Is that okay?”

“I- yes?” Dan stuttered, and allowed Phil to continue tugging him out of the room. 

They walked in complete silence and Phil’s hand burned a hole through Dan’s wrist. He could feel his heart pounding out of his chest and there was fear clawing at his throat. Was Phil mad? Was he taking Dan to the courtyard to beat him up? And why the hell was everyone _staring at them._

Contrary to popular belief, Phil didn’t drag Dan to the courtyard to beat him up. Instead, he shoved Phil into a bathroom in the J hallway where Dan knew wasn’t used very often. The bathroom was quiet as they barged in, and Dan bit down harshly on his lip as Phil finally let go of his wrist and turned to face him. 

Dan couldn’t look him in the eye. He stared over his shoulder as Phil surveyed his face, running his eyes over the freckles dotting his nose and the dimples in his cheeks. He could feel him tracing the curls in his hair as though he was trying to commit it to memory. It was uncomfortable, but not entirely unpleasant. 

More than anything, Dan was confused. 

“Why did you bring me in here?” he asked quietly, shuffling his feet and looking down at the ground when the silence became too much. 

Phil sighed and he sounded disappointed. It wasn’t a good sound for him and Dan’s stomach shrunk with nerves. “You’re _that_ Dan, right? The one I’ve been playing Animal Crossing with?”

Slowly, nervously, Dan nodded his head. Was Phil mad? Was he disappointed that Dan wasn’t some pastel goddess he could potentially fall in love with? 

From the way Phil suddenly brought him into a hug, Dan could conclude that he was none of these things. He held Dan tight, burying his nose in Dan’s shoulder. One hand curled around his waist while the other held the back of Dan’s head in place. It was so intimate that it took Dan’s breath away, choking him and making it literally impossible for him to breathe. 

When Phil spoke, his voice was soft, his breath fanning against Dan’s ear. “I’m so happy I finally get to know who you are.”

Dan’s legs buckled beneath him, but Phil kept him upright with a chuckle. It took him probably ten minutes to actually formulate a response, but Phil didn’t rush him, just held him and rubbed his back as though he was trying to soothe him. “You wanted to get to know me?”

“Of _course_ I wanted to get to know you,” Phil replied fondly. He backed away from Dan, held him at arm’s length so Dan could see the honest expression on his face. “After you stopped talking to me, I was so worried. I looked for every Dan that I knew but ultimately couldn’t figure out who _my_ Dan was. Until I saw you sitting in the same seat as me, and then I remembered that you always played your DS in the hallway. I was so mad at myself for not connecting the dots sooner.” He cocked his head to the side, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “But… why did you leave? Why did you stop talking to me? Did I do something wrong?”

Dan was shaking his head before Phil had even stopped talking, desperate for Phil to know that none of this was because of him. That Dan had stopped talking to him because he was too _good_ for Dan. “After I found out who you were, I didn’t think you’d want to get to know me. The _real_ me.” Dan sighed and frowned, not meeting Phil’s eyes. “I don’t really have a life. I’m not popular or well-liked like you are. All I do is play Animal Crossing. I’m not exactly exciting.”

With a groan, Phil shook Dan’s shoulders slightly. His hands were clasped tightly onto him as though he were afraid to let go. “But don’t you understand, Dan? I don’t _care_ about any of that stuff. I want to know you. The real you. All of you.” He grabbed Dan’s chin lightly, making Dan meet his eyes. Those gorgeous eyes that were all the colours of the ocean and the sky combined. “I _like_ you, Dan.” 

Dan felt as though he had been drenched in cold water. In a good way. The skin on his arms rose and he could feel himself tremble in Phil’s grip as he kept his eyes locked on Phil’s gaze. He swallowed, tongue tied in knots, and licked his lips. Phil’s eyes tracked the movement and Dan’s mouth was completely dry now. “I like you too,” he said quietly. “Probably too much.”

Phil chuckled and shook his head, a small but joyful grin on his face. “Nothing is too much when it comes to you.”

For a moment, they just started at each other, basking in the fact that they were finally in each other’s presence. Dan was fully aware that Phil was leaning in closer, ever so slowly, and his breath hitched when their noses touched. 

Phil nuzzled his nose with his own lightly, almost like a little bunny kiss. “Can I kiss you?” Phil breathed, his hand moving to clasp Dan’s own in a warm embrace. 

And who was Dan to deny him when his breath was so warm against Dan’s lips?

The kiss was short and chaste, something uncertain and shy. Something that promised more in the future, something that told Dan that they were going to get to know each other very well. Phil’s lips were soft on his own and Dan felt like he was the luckiest person in the world in that very moment. 

When they pulled away, Phil kissed him lightly on the cheek and smiled so brightly that his entire face lit up like the sun. “And Dan?”

Dan hummed, still dazed in the aftereffects of the kiss. 

“Stop assuming you’re not good enough when you are damn near perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!


End file.
